BRADENTON, Fla. -- The Pirates have an abbreviated workout schedule today, the final day before the first full-squad workout. Only one player, Gorkys Hernandez, has not yet reported. No pitchers will throw bullpen sessions today, and live batting practice -- throwing off a mound behind a protective screen to hitters in a batting cage -- begins Tuesday.
The New York Times’ Tyler Kepner writes about former Yankee Francisco Cervelli and the opportunity he has to be a starter -- an opportunity that was cut short in New York by injuries and his Biogenesis suspension.
Clint Hurdle revealed a new slogan to ESPN’s Jayson Stark: “And then some,” meaning they need to do what they’ve done the past two years and then some to avoid the wild-card game and make a run.
Cuban infielder Yoan Moncada agreed to terms with the Red Sox on a deal worth about $30 million, according to MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez. Because Moncada, 19, is younger than 23 and did not play in the Cuban professional leagues for five years, he is subject to the new restrictions on international signing bonuses. This means the Red Sox will pay a 100 percent tax on the contract, a $60 million total outlay, and they cannot sign any players for more than $300,000 during the next two signing periods.
MLB would prefer not to change the pace-of-game rules midseason, senior VP for baseball operations Peter Woodfork told the Houston Chronicle’s Evan Drellich. Woodfork also said the league looks at the strike zone each offseason routinely. Yahoo Sports had reported that the league was considering shrinking the strike zone to enhance run-scoring.
First Published: March 24, 2016, 5:05 p.m.
